Ever felt the need to shout "ding!" after a raise or a promotion? Then you're already familiar with the concept of "talking in Game." Pat Miller takes a closer look at how gamers are communicating with each other the best way they can: by mining their favorite games for terminology.

I can't honestly say that I've used video game speak to that extent in my life. I've used it jokingly before, but if someone had actually said some of those things to me, I would have wondered why they are taking such pains to explain something in such a roundabout manner. Nothing wrong with it, of course (I know people who have used D&D speak to describe real life), but some of the dialogue seems a bit...over the top, in my opinion.

That was by far the nerdiest article that I've read in some time. I'll admit to using game jargon here and there, but not in terms of someone coaching you in fighting games being the equivalent of dating advice. I gotta say...I'm a bit impressed, but extremely bemused. Well said, sir, well said.

Meh. I doubt you wouldn't find the same thing in any subculture. Don't you think musician might compare their relationships to the ease or lack thereof of playing a song, or how different brands of instruments handle? Hell, just a few weeks ago there was an article saying pretty much the same thing about Star Trek, and I only came here to post this because I wrote 'to boldy go' on an entirely different site and reminded myself of it.

Um, I've been playing video games for 22 years, and I've never had any desire to speak this way. None of my friends speak this way, either. If I ever heard saying anything like that, I think I'd be tempted to introduce their face to my mano de pimp.

I'm a pretty hardcore gamer, I've been known to beat games literally the day I get them in 8 hour+ sessions, but I've never talked in Game. I get the concept, and have even heard some of my friends do it, but it just... never clicked with me.

Speaking in game terms outside of games is rarely a matter of communicating much more than "I'm a member of this group." It's the same thing as mentioning an in-joke among friends, or slang in any number of professions like sailors or IT professionals. It's frequently too contrived to be useful in and of itself.

Oh, come on. It's still English. Other languages have their subculture slang as well. If you ever put that you speak "Gamer" on a resume, you will get laughed at. This really isn't worth writing an article about.

I don't have to force gamespeak. I'm naturally fluent in it, but reign it in to games and contexts whoever I'm talking to is familiar with. Generally, it's more personalised language that a whole "dialect of gamer". I speak in GGX terminology from time to time. Mostly I'm just a tropespeaker. I can use singular trope names as complete sentences as part of a logical conversation with someone unversed in tropes and still make sense.

Well written! Can't say I've done anything like the fighting game analogue myself, but the opening paragraph rang pretty true for me. Sometimes I get a little enthusiastic when I meet another gamer and go off on a tirade, only to realize that other people are looking at us like we're insane. Good times.

ThePyr:Oh, come on. It's still English. Other languages have their subculture slang as well. If you ever put that you speak "Gamer" on a resume, you will get laughed at. This really isn't worth writing an article about.

Really? Something's not worth talking about if you can't put it on a resume?

Good read, I think it's definatly something to do with absorbing the pop culture and languages (even if created in a game studio) around us. plus you get to be cool in that selectivly geek manner. I think my most common one is f6 (my usual mapped quick save) when I'm about go into something major // tests / sex / night of narcotics etc etc, and f7 when things just dont go right...